The Rogue Reaper (Sword Art Online)

Part 19: Flames of War

BOOM!

The deafening blast cut Noct off, the force sending shockwaves through his body and shaking the entire building like an earthquake. Kathrall and Kizito stumbled, grabbing onto the edge of the table for stability. They took a second to regain their footing while the ringing in their ears faded.

"The fuck was that," Kizito said, reaching for his katana, "a giant firebomb?!"

The doors flew open and two Army soldiers charged in with their glowing swords raised, aiming for Kathrall in the middle of Noct and Kizito.

Ryuu could be seen in the hall outside, blocking several more attackers from entering the room. "Watch out! Enemy incoming!" he shouted over his shoulder.

Kathrall grabbed the lance from his back as Kizito slid into position in front of him in a defensive stance.

"Get down!" Noct shouted. «Final Hour»! He used the burst of speed from the Hidden Skill to intercept the attackers, throwing out a «Serration Wave» to slow them and stop their skills from activating. Kizito took on one while Noct took the other. A deep scarlet streak was painted across their white Army chest plates and shoulder pieces.

"They're not with the Army," Noct said as he charged another Sword Skill. "They're Marauders! Don't hold back!"

The three of them made quick work of the white-clad assailants. Noct's sword ended up in the chest of one. Kizito kept the other busy while Kathrall's lance went through his stomach.

They exchanged nods and went to back up Ryuu, but when they looked they found him spinning his guan dao in a victory pose over a heaping pile of writhing and unconscious Marauders. Their HP bars with only a sliver of red floated above them in a crowded, overlapping mess.

"Nice try," Ryuu said, "but you're all a thousand years from posing a challenge the Dragon of the Wind!"

He noticed them in the doorway and waved. "Sorry about that, Captain. A couple of them got past me," he said sheepishly.

Kathrall looked around him as they stepped over the mountain of splayed out bodies. "Seven, eight... Ten... This is rather impressive," he said. "The only problem is what to do with them now. We shouldn't leave them here unattended. Tekashime, do you have another Corridor Crystal?"

"Yes, sir."

"Put them through and lock them in a cell. They can all go into one, I don't care, just be quick and come back as fast as possible.... And make up a new pass code," he said, looking at Noct.

Kizito went straight to work, using the Corridor Crystal to open a large portal to the Army's prison and throwing the helpless Marauders into it. The rest of them hurried outside, towards the sound of shouting and clashing weapons.

The packed fort was in chaos. The Army was spread out everywhere, fighting wherever there was room to swing a sword with no semblance of formation. With the enemy wearing the same uniforms and everyone's cursors turning orange or red it was extremely difficult to tell who was on which side at a glance. The confused soldiers could be seen being hesitant deciding whether or not to trust each other. Several times Noct spotted an Army soldier nod or wave to another, only to be stabbed in the back when they turned away. As the battle raged on, a conflagration of red and orange flames burned freely in the towers and buildings, sending a smog of black smoke into the air.

"This is bad," Noct said under his breath.

"This makes no sense," Ryuu said, "How are there so many of them here? There's no way they all could've been hiding in the fort all this time, they're a Red guild. Their cursors would have given them away."